After months of evaluation, discussion and analysis, the Texans’ draft board is set as the clock ticks down to Thursday’s first round that begins at 7 p.m.

At this point in the process, the board doesn’t change. General manager Rick Smith, who’s overseeing his seventh draft, said the Texans “are fine-tuning” two days before the start of the three-day draft.

“It’s making sure that we’ve dotted every i and crossed every t,” Smith said Tuesday during his annual predraft news conference. “I’m on the phone a lot at this time.

“I’m trying to get a sense for how I think Thursday is going to progress and how Friday and Saturday will go so that we’re prepared and we can anticipate some of the things that we might need to do.”

Smith has used five of his six first-round picks on defensive players, including four who will be starting next season: inside linebacker Brian Cushing, cornerback Kareem Jackson, defensive end J.J. Watt and outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus.

Left tackle Duane Brown is the only offensive player Smith has selected in the first round.

Smith admitted to the coaches’ trying to influence him.

“Gary (Kubiak) tries to stay neutral because he’s got the role of the head coach, (but) if I were to sit here and say that coaches don’t try to influence me, I wouldn’t be truthful,” he said. “That’s just a part of the process.”

Highly rated receivers who could be available when they pick are Clemson’s DeAndre Hopkins, Baylor’s Terrance Williams, USC’s Robert Woods and Tennessee’s Justin Hunter.

Smith has three options with the 27th overall pick: He can trade up, trade down or keep the pick. In his first six drafts, Smith hasn’t traded up without trading down first.

“I think there’s only one draft (in which) I didn’t execute a trade,” Smith said. “We’re always open to trades, moving up and moving back. We’re open to doing that again this year.”

If Smith remains at 27, there’s talent and value for several of the Texans’ needs.

“I’m confident there’ll be a player there that we like,” he said. “Depending on how the board falls, there may be a player that we’ve got a certain value on, (and) all of a sudden (he’s) available, and we may want to go up and get him.”